Francesco grew up with the passion for costumes. From the Zorro outfit tailored by his grandmother to the Hussar costume he made with his own hands by modifying existing clothes during study breaks, the transition was short. Even though his life and professional choices were far from the world of historical clothing, the preparation of Carnival costumes to wear in Venice occupied the entire year! But true passions cannot be contained, so Francesco, with the support of his wife Anna, embarked on the adventure in the world of costumes. Thirty years have passed since November 26, 1994. Years of satisfaction, fears, and sharing with the thousands of customers and friends from all over the world who encourage him to continue this splendid adventure, exporting Francesco’s creations to stages, palaces, and public and private collections. Years of continuous study and maturation, during which his innate taste has been paired with increasingly refined tailoring techniques and the rediscovery of a cut forgotten for centuries, recovered not only with patience but also with the innate ability to adapt history to today’s body. For this reason, for several national networks such as ZDF, ORFF, Arte, he produces costumes for documentaries and productions, combining historical tailoring with the spirit of the era being reproduced. This is the difficult task Francesco faces every day: to blend his taste and history with the dreams of those who will wear the garment. A task that thirty years of success encourage him to continue, passing it on to future generations through lectures held in Academies and through the constant presence of students who come from all over Europe to learn historical tailoring in the large country house where Francesco has decided to carry out production. Immersed in greenery, where he can retreat to find the necessary relaxing silence to find inspiration, tending to a garden where each essence has a meaning for Francesco, his creativity has found the right dimension, far from the chaos of Venetian colors and beauty that intoxicate and confuse.

There is no detail, no shape, or proportion that Anna, when approaching a new creation, has not already imagined finished thanks to her immense creativity, facing each creation with new solutions. Anna Zappella is our milliner. From military hats, which follow precise rules of dimensions and decorations, to the most charming hairstyles for ladies of all eras, to the most imaginative headpieces, Anna’s creativity is the perfect complement to each costume created by Francesco.
Nothing is impossible for her. Upon request, she has created gondolas complete with illuminated canopies, and upon pulling back the curtains, one can see the interior with sofas, as well as hats of exceptional sizes, adorned with feathers, decorations, and uncommon colors that, thanks to her innate good taste, find perfect harmony!
In years of experience, she has learned to manage the quirks of the old informant who, for over a century, has been producing hats thanks to steam and wooden forms crafted by skilled carpenters following Anna’s instructions. Having received the most diverse requests, she knows how to approach difficulties and find solutions!
Then there are the creations that arise because she feels them inside herself… sometimes there are hat bases that wander around the Atelier for months, already shaped. Unique shapes that Anna experiments with, and when she decides it’s time to finish them, when she feels they are ready, she works tirelessly, creating hats of timeless beauty, aided by pins of every size, irons with the most unexpected shapes, an inventiveness that knows no bounds.
If you are passionate about fashion, costume, beauty, you cannot fail to have your hat made by Anna, and the experience can only be complete if you develop it together to have the opportunity to get to know the artist who brings your ideas to life!